Desire’s Frail Nightmare
by NijiOnna
Summary: Shadow demons create mortals nightmares. Their lonely prince comes across a dream made by a mortal named Ryou. Prince Marik then immediately becomes infatuated with him. But is this love, or obsession? MxR Deathshipping.
1. Chapter 1

-1Desire's Frail Nightmare 

**Summary: **Shadow demons create mortals nightmares. Their lonely prince comes across a dream made by a mortal named Ryou. Prince Marik then immediately becomes infatuated with him. But is this love, or obsession? MxR Deathshipping.

**Main pairing: **Yami no MarikxRyou (Deathshipping)

**Warnings: **Yaoi, some swearing, future lemons, molesting… em… If I think of anything else I'll put them at the top of the chapter.

**Rating: **T for now but will probably be raised to M for later chapters.

**Disclaimer: **Don't own Yu-Gi-Oh. If I did then the show wouldn't be about card games that's for sure…

Chapter 1

"Prince Marik, pay attention!"

A small eight year old boy, with spiky platinum blonde hair, was laying his head on the paper filled desk in front of him. The pen in his right hand had dropped from his grip long ago, the child now staring to the side, gazing longingly out the window.

"Aren't we done yet?" The copper-skinned blonde asked in a bored tone, not bothering to turn round and face the one who spoke.

A scowl formed itself on the elderly man's face. "Prince Marik, if you are to become a great leader, then you need to study-"

"But it's ridiculous!" The small prince yelled, throwing his arms into the air and lifting his face from the desk, only to fall back and slouch against the back of his chair. "How does father expect me to become a 'great leader', if I haven't even experienced a human's nightmare! All the other shadow demons have!"

"My prince." The tutor growled out tiredly. "With all due respect, you are not like 'all the other shadow demons'. You have a duty to withhold! Your future followers aren't going to become King one day! You don't have time to run off, invade humans dreams-"

"But that's the point!" Marik shouted angrily again, successfully cutting off his tutor's rant. "One day I'm going to be the King of all the shadow demons! It's a shadow demon's job to create nightmares! How am I suppose to rule over the other demons if I haven't frightened one measly human!?"

"Because you need to study!" The elder yelled, just about losing all his patience. "Rulers have to-"

"You know, I should really get you fired…" The price mumbled, leaning forward on the desk again, resting his head in his hand, and giving his tutor a rather un-amused look.

"W-What?!" His tutor baffled out frustratingly, eyes wide in disbelief at what he just heard.

"Yeah, I mean, you don't really talk to me respectfully do you? A prince should be treated better." Marik stated calmly, a small smirk on his face.

Three…two…one…

"THAT'S IT!" The older demon roared. "I'M SICK OF YOUR ATTITUDE EVERY DAY! IF YOU DON'T START TAKING ME SERIOUSLY, I'LL--"

"You dare threaten the son of your beloved King? I wonder what my father would say about that." The young prince countered smugly, his smirk growing wider in cruel amusement.

The man's face, once red with anger, was now drained of all colour, leaving a sickly white in its place. "N-No prince! Forgive me for my insolence, I don't know what came over me. Please, lets not worry his highness over such silly matters." The elderly shadow demon tried humbly, in a small pitiful voice.

"I don't know…" The young blonde mumbled tiredly, forging a serious tone to his voice, and in result, putting the aging tutor even more on edge.

"You've done enough studying for today." The old demon added quickly, hoping to save himself from a father's rage. "Why not have the rest of the day off, my prince? You've worked exceptionally hard! And good work deserves rewards!" He continued to praise, gathering a few books as he did, and shoving them hurriedly into his leather case.

"But I thought you said-"

"Never mind what I said Prince, your comfort comes first." The older demon then bowed and backed away towards the door. "We'll continue your lessons tomorrow. Enjoy the rest of the afternoon my Prince." And with that said, the tutor rushed out of the room, quickly slamming the door shut behind him.

Young Marik smirked triumphantly, his eyes lingering a moment longer on the door his tutor was more than happy to run out of. "Well that was easy…" The prince then swung his dangling legs jadedly in his chair. "I wonder what I should do now…" The boy of royalty mused.

Jumping from his chair Marik strode across the room to the open window. Resting his crossed arms on the stone windowsill, the spiky-haired blonde peered outside. The cool night air washed over his face, lightly blowing the golden bangs of hair that widely covered his forehead, and just reached over his eyes. In the nights sky, a ghostly pale moon glowed eerily down at him.

Below the prince's window shadowy figures shifted restlessly, but excitedly, across the streets. Beings that could morph their bodies into a skeleton structure. That could grow extra arms, legs, teeth, tails, even heads. They could grow until they reached the height of giants, or shrink until they were the size of a small hairy spider. They could breath fire to forge the likeness of dragons, gain claws to hunt and chase their prey like wolves, or roar their booming voices only to let the wind taunt and whisper their victim's name.

These were the creatures that made up his father's kingdom. That would one day become **his** loyal public.

These creatures were the shadow demons.

A shrill scream cut through the air, and Marik let a faint smile form on his lips as he slowly closed his eyes, willingly letting the disturbing noises sooth him.

The screams of humans would often echo throughout this world, a sure sign that shadow demons were using Earth's hours of sleep to their full advantage, haunting mortals dreams until they were turned into full blown nightmares. But he was a shadow demon to. Why wasn't he allowed the chance to do the same thing?

An excited squeal caught Marik off guard and his eyes flew open at the annoying sound. Frowning, the royal offspring stuck his head a little further out the window and glanced to his right. His line of vision was immediately brought to the castle's overly large garden. Two shadow demons, one smaller in size than the other, looked to be having a game of tag. The smallest demon looked a lot like Marik only younger, a year or two perhaps. The younger Marik also had a frailer body and a different hairstyle. Where as Marik hair stuck up in spikes, this demon's hair fell straight to his shoulders. The second, taller demon, was older than the Marik look-a-like and looked a round about Marik's age, maybe a year older. This kid had very little hair on his head and only had a black ponytail tied at the very back of his scalp. Like the prince his skin colour was a bronzed tan, but unlike Marik his eyes were a yellowish green.

Malik and Rishid.

Malik Ishtar is his younger brother, also a prince to the fellow shadow fiends. What angered Marik greatly however, was that Malik was never expected to one day live up to the title of king. His little brother never had to work as hard as Marik did, was never forced to stay up late at night to study pointless rules, was never expected to memorize useless dates dealing with their family history… Malik didn't have to do anything. His brother could just sit around and do nothing all day, stare into space without a care in the world. Really, the only thing Malik had to do was appear at formal events his father thought was necessary to attend.

Not like Marik.

In fact their father pretty much ignored Malik completely. The king rarely acknowledged that he had a second son at all. He even went as far as hiring Malik is own personal servant to look after him so he wouldn't have to. That's how Rishid came along. From then on it was like the two were attached at the hip. They were always together, always laughing and playing, completely ignorant of the outside world… And Rishid was always keeping a close eye on the youngest prince, cleaning up his wounds when his master fell over, holding him when he cries…

Malik squealed again and ran behind a tree, Rishid hot on his trail.

Growling angrily, the future king turned away from the playful scene and ducked back into his room.

Malik was pathetic. He really was a baby, having to rely on others to take care of him. Marik himself was a strong, independent person, and he was proud of himself for turning out that way. Unlike his brother, he didn't need someone to be around him all the time, he was fine being alone, only depending on himself. Who wanted some annoying pest following you around all day anyway? Having company would just… irate him. He didn't _need_ anyone. Not family, not friends. No one. Saying that you did would be a weakness, and Marik was not weak…. Maybe… Maybe sometimes he would imagine what it would be like though… Seeing friends play together was completely different from actually experiencing it… Experiencing a true, close friendship…. Being able to confine in someone and trust that that person would never tell what they said so another living soul… If Marik was to ever find someone reliable enough to call friend, what would that person be like? Would he or she be exactly like Marik?…He hoped not. It… It would be better if the person wasn't anything like Marik, but if that person wasn't like Marik then they probably wouldn't get along. Marik wouldn't know what to do. He had no experience with other people. The only person he truly knew how to deal with was himself.

But he didn't really like himself either. He hated how his life was put together, who he would one day become. He hated who he was…. So, really then, there was no chance of Marik gaining a friend was there? A person different from him probably wouldn't be able to stand Marik for very long, and Marik would most likely feel the same way. A person so similar to himself Marik wouldn't like, because he didn't like himself anyway.

If Marik wanted to be weak then maybe that would have been a problem.

Though the prince was no longer looking at the two, he could still hear both Rishid's and Malik's laughter flutter in through the window and so he rushed from the room, slamming the door as he went.

For some reason he couldn't bare hearing Malik's and Rishid's voices any longer.

The demon stomped down the castle's dimly lit hallways in a very aggravated manner, not really having a destination in mind and merely letting his feet take him wherever they wished. A few servants, who were unlucky enough to place themselves in Marik's presence, were quick move out of Marik's way, choosing instead to finish their cleaning duties later. The small boy watched the servants scattering with uninterested eyes. Heh, honestly, they acted like Marik would turn on them like a rabid dog if they were to so much as hold eye contacted with him. But Marik had never done anything to them, his father was the one to punish and yell out orders to them…. Ah, so maybe that was it. They were afraid that he would go running off to daddy to tell him all about the commoners being mean to him?

The youngster let out a cruel snicker as he turned a corner.

As if he would ever willingly go seek out his father. Sure, he may have threatened them with his father a few times in the past, but he would never actually do it. He wasn't some snobby brat that would go and squeal on someone, he just liked to see the fear in their eyes when he threatened them with it. Honestly, didn't they realise that his parent treated him with the same disrespect and cruelty as he did with his workers? No, scratch that. Marik was treated **worse**. Obviously not. The staff didn't want to notice. Why would they? To them Marik was just the brat that would one day replace their aging king, most likely bringing a whole new wave of cruelty, if not the same amount, along with him. What was the saying? Like father like son?

The blonde clenched his fist by his sides, turning yet another corner and stepping down another passage.

They thought they had it bad now having to put up with such a merciless master? Ha! Just wait until he was in control of this pathetic world! Then he would show them… he'd show them all! He would punish them for their worthless opinions of him! Punish them for judging him without allowing him to prove them wrong!

If it was at all possible, he would punish his father to.

Another step was taken down another hallway.

His father… Oh, how he hated that man. He remembered the times in the past when he had found Malik crying miserably, sobbing about how much he wished his father would notice him, just acknowledge that he existed. Marik of course had told him to stop acting like such a baby, but in the end the comment had only fired up an argument between the two, involving Malik rambling on about how Marik wouldn't understand, that he _always _had daddy's attention. Stupid brother… He didn't _want_ that man's attention. Didn't Malik realise how lucky he was? Of course he didn't. Malik was selfish. He always thought of himself, never anyone else… Then suddenly, regardless if Malik was worthy or not, his idiot, self-centred sibling, had gotten Rishid… and… and he never cried over the subject again…

It… It wasn't fair…

The child came to a halt.

But then again his life had never been fair.

Bringing his eyes back into focus and out of his blurred thinking, Marik looked around to take in his surroundings and see where his feet had taken him. He was in the middle of a corridor, a very narrow one which he didn't seem to recognise… Had he perhaps unknowingly travelled into an area which his father had deemed to be 'off limits' to his children? There were very few parts of the castle that Marik wasn't allowed to go to, but there was indeed places that the shadow king forbid Marik, Malik and most of the other demons in the castle, from entering. Marik never knew why… It seemed Marik had now broken one of his father's rules though…

The prince should have headed back once he realised this, he knew the oldest Ishtar was not one to forgive others, accident or not, but he didn't move. Instead the child found himself stood before a door. There was nothing interesting about it. It just looked like a plain, old, wooden door, but for some reason Marik, defying all common sense and risking putting himself in even more trouble if he were to be found out, reached out, grasped the door knob, and turned.

And the door swung open.

The room was empty, dreary and dark. It gave off a sense of living, like the cement situated between every stone brick were in fact veins in disguise, it's harsh grey colour being a substitute to the more predictable hellish red of blood. It was as though the entire room was alive, or at least showed evidence that it once lived… At the moment the room looked forgotten, cobwebs were the only thing he could see housed here… Maybe it wasn't living at all, perhaps it had died long ago after a pointless struggle for warmth, to be kept clean, to be furnished and wanted… not ignored… Was this room, this void empty space, dead? But he could hear it. He could here that faint pounding noise echoing off the walls so familiar to his own heart beat… No, maybe not dead then. This unusual soul was sleeping, left to slumber within a comma but still pleading to be awakened again with each steady breath.

The young prince took a step forwards, his feet drawing him further into the bare room slowly, but with great confidence. There was undoubtedly something different about this room but he would not be intimidated by it. Shadow demons feared nothing. **He** feared _nothing_.

As soon as Marik reached the centre of the room the air shifted and rippled, and suddenly a long length mirror appeared before his very eyes. It stood perfectly still from where it hovered above the floor, blocking the demon's path while the glass stared dully back at him. The boy narrowed his eyes suspiciously and carefully raised his right hand to press against the glass. There was something unusual about this mirror, and not just by the fact it morphed right out of thin air. The shadow realm housed many peculiar things, a mirror appearing by its own will was just one of many haunting tricks to be found within this world… No, what Marik found strange was that the glass did not show his reflection, defying all purpose that an ordinary mirror was typically used for.

As soon as his fingertips brushed against that colourless surface a chill was transpired to rack violently down his spine, the touch inspiring the cool glass to shock the other in a delightfully teasing way. However that moment barley lasted a second before a brilliant bright light covered his form, forcing the demon to turn away before that intense source blinded him. The light dimmed down some-what once realising that Marik, the person who had taken his time to seek out this object after so many years, had turned away, denying the mirror the attention it had longingly craved, and demanding that those young demon eyes were once again fixed on what they originally found so interesting.

And suddenly, that once teasing touch had turned seductive…

Marik's senses turned haywire, almost to the point where it became overwhelming. That cold chill had turned into a compelling warm glow that sunk into the prince's bronze skin, the feeling of delight changing into an almost orgasmic sensation. That faint noise, the one that Marik could have sworn was a heartbeat, had become louder, faster, rapid… and was no longer a single sound. It had doubled, then doubled again, and again and again and again and… well he couldn't even tell, there were too many to single out and count, those beats, thumps, and pounds had mixed together and were viciously overlapping each other, making it impossible to tell just how many there exactly were.

Now that the light wasn't such a burden on his eyes, Marik rotated his head back to gaze at the mirror, the sight that greeted him astonishing him but also exciting him. Images were appearing in the 'none-reflective glass', but they were whizzing by so fast that it was hard to tell just what was being shown to him. One by one the images appeared and changed in a flash of blurred colours, the noises still continuing to surround him, but thankfully not increasing in volume. If that were the case then Marik would have surly gone deaf.

Narrowing his eyes the shadow demon moved his face in closer to get a better view of the scenes quickly flickering past like someone had pressed the secret fast forward button. On closer inspection Marik realised what he was seeing were in fact people…

A smirked found it's way onto Marik's face.

…No, not just simply 'people', they were _humans, _each one having their eyes closed, peacefully sleeping in some way or another. This newly found revelation had instantly gotten Marik shaking with excitement, and a rush of adrenaline flooded his veins. It was at that moment that Marik realised this room wasn't holding _a _soul. No, it was holding the gateway to _millions_.

He had read about this object in books, and though his tutor would usually have to prompt Marik to do work, let alone _read_ anything, he had found this particular subject extremely interesting, and he had tried to find out everything he could about these 'gateways' without further encouragement. It was what these 'mirrors' were used for that really attracted Marik… because in his mind they were the one thing he couldn't have, the one thing that was **denied** to him, but what those lucky commoners could enjoy whenever they so pleased. It shouldn't be like that. Royalty came before peasants, so why wasn't he allowed that same right?

The real purpose of these mirrors were to transport shadow demons to the human world and to a specific human. You see, a demon was suppose to approach the mirror and ask for their perfect victim. A demon didn't just magically appear in a random human's dream, it wasn't quite that simple. Different shadow demons had different tastes and abilities, and so when they felt like giving a nightmare it was better to find a human that matched their preferences. For example, some demon's might prefer their victims to have a fear of drowning over a fear of heights, or for them to have a phobia of wasps instead of the more predictable spider. It made the demon's fun more challenging, or for the less experienced demons, a little easier. Age, gender, anything could be specified if the demon wished it, they just had to make sure what they wanted was made clear. If the mirror could see exactly what that demon wanted, then the gateway would send them to the exact human they most wanted. If the wish was untruthful… then the mirror would just shut itself down, go to sleep like all those boys, girls, men and women were doing on the other side of that glass.

Marik's smirk grew, and he eagerly placed his free hand, the one doing nothing and simply hanging by his side, on the glass to join the one already resting there, pressing his entire palm against that smooth surface to feel more of that gracious warm pulse. He'd always wanted to do this. Now he could.

"The human has to be…" What were humans most afraid of? How did he want to create his first ever nightmare? "….it has to be male." Yes, male. He didn't want it to be so easy that it was over before his fun had properly begun. He had heard that females were scared easier than males, so he didn't want a girl. "…A boy."

The images began to slow down a fraction.

"He needs to be…" Now, what did he want the boy to be scared of? What did he love the most but would cause the human such terrifying fear? "…afraid of the dark." Darkness, it was perfect. Marik took pleasure in the thought of being surrounded by shadows, eventually melting into utter darkness. It was exciting. Maybe he could get the boy to believe he was outside somewhere in a forest? It would be the dead of night so he wouldn't be able to see very well… Marik could make the other believe that the shadows, created by an artificial moon, were chasing him, taunting him… just waiting to get that tiny bit closer before they grabbed him, pulling the boy underground like he was about to be left under layers upon layers of soil, buried alive…

The mirror slowed down another fraction.

The prince shuddered in poised glee, the thought opening all sorts of possibilities to his awaited tortuous game. Though the idea also made him realise that other certain things needed to be specified, something just as important as phobias and fears. "He can't be one of those arrogant, overconfident little pricks." Such vile language from such a young mouth, though if any other demon had overheard then they wouldn't have been surprised, and they certainly wouldn't have expected anything less from their future king, besides, it was an important point. He didn't want someone who would try and conjure up a sword to fight back. It wouldn't do the boy any good and it would ruin the mood. That, and it was so annoyingly pathetic to watch a human try and be a 'hero'. It would suck the fun out of everything. "He should be anxious, but not a complete wimp."

Again the images slowed.

Now that he thought about it, maybe personality was a vital aspect in all this… "…Maybe… maybe he should be a little shy… polite… " The mirror's swirl of colours seemed to ripple a little at that request, as though becoming slightly confused to where the wanted traits were headed. "The complete opposite of me." Marik's voice had lowered in tone, and he seemed to be staring at the glass a little more blankly, like his mind was slowly taking him somewhere else all together. "Nice, he must be kind… and friendly…" What the hell? Just what was he thinking? Why was he asking for those qualities? For what possible reason was there for wanting a victim with those exact traits? But most importantly, why did he feel so desperate to ask for them?

The images began to dull down, slowly loosing presence of life…

"He will be sweet, but not disgustingly so." The next of kin's words had turned from those of a strong request, to a firm command. It was like he was describing someone he had envisioned for a long time, someone who's personality he secretly knew off by heart… a person he had known from an even younger age, desired desperately for years and still desired even now. He knew the description perfectly. "He's considerate, playful, but always-"

But before Marik could finish, the mirror had completely shut down. There was no longer the vivid sound of heartbeats, no longer an alluring warmth to entice the young prince closer, and that once brilliant light turned down to a gently glow, had completely died. Marik's gaze seemed to refocus at that and his eyes widened in panic. "And he could be scared of spiders and snakes, and…!" But nothing happened, Marik's attempts at pulling out random, and probably more appropriate, characteristics proved to be useless. The mirror didn't wake up for him again.

"NO!" The future king yelled in furry, eyes narrowing as he glared at the glass like he was wanting to smash it into a million pieces. He couldn't lose his chance! He may not get another! "Start up again and show me the humans! I **command** it!" The order didn't seem to effect the object in the slightest however, and the only reply the mirror gave was deafening silence. "No…" Marik's rage had fallen pitifully, and he recoiled his arms back to his sides, his hands no longer in contact with the glass. Instead the child just collapsed, falling to his knees in front of the object that had tormented him so, the thing that had given him false hope and a chaste look into a world he would never know. An experience… a feeling… that he would forever be denied…

The boy seemed tiered, exhausted though the only thing he had done was stand and speak, but for some reason he felt completely drained and he couldn't seem to move from his place on the ground. "Why?…" The bronzed son asked in a soft, grieved whisper, though in truth he didn't know why, or what, he was asking.

For a few moments only shunned, noiseless peace met his ears. It had been what Marik had expected, but then something surprising happened…

"_You ask for a wish within a wish." _

The voice sounded neither male nor female, neither harsh nor calm, neither rough nor smooth… it was something else entirely, something mysterious and unreal. Marik was undoubtedly staggered to hear the reply, though he hid it well. The demon had made subtle looks around the room, but he had quickly realised that no one else had sneaked inside. When the demon did look up at the mirror again, he found that that faint white glow had returned.

"I don't understand."

"_You are asking for something which no other demon has requested for in my time… something beyond my normal capacity to grant."_

The prince frowned in both annoyance and confusion, and looked to be on the verge of throwing a very unbecoming childish tantrum. "What are you talking about? I'm asking you for the same thing every demon uses you for! A human to scare!"

"_No."_

Marik's confusion grew tenfold, he looked completely clueless. Was the mirror maybe trying to trick him? But why? Maybe it had decided to put him through some kind of test? The demons eyes suddenly narrowed dangerously as a thought struck him. What if the mirror held the same priorities as his father did? Did this object not think he was capable of creating one measly nightmare? The idea was infuriating! "**No?** What do you mean No?! I have every right to go to the human world and scare some stupid kid like all the other shadow demon do! Do you hear me?! I'm asking you to give me the same thing you have given other demons, and I'm not leaving until you do it!!!"

"_You are wrong young one. It is true that you hold the same right as any other demon to create nightmares, and therefore, should be allowed into the human world… but that is not what you are asking." _

"I…" Marik's anger had subsided slightly at the entity's explanation, but now looked utterly lost. "I still don't understand. All I want is…" All he wants is…? Didn't he know?… "I just…" Or was he just incapable of saying it? The boy suddenly gave a mighty jolt and quickly rose to his feet, grabbing the two opposing sides of the mirror with both hands and clutching harshly, as though getting ready to shake the floating glass furiously. He then yelled, loud and clear and in a most commanding tone, exactly what was on his mind in the most simplest of words. "**Just give me the human I want!**"

There was a moment of silence where the mirror seemed to contemplate what to do. Marik was about to start shouting and lose his temper all together, thinking that the mirror had gone into 'hibernation mode' just to annoy him further, when the silence was broken and the decision made was voiced.

"_So be it."_

The child of the night watched with great fascination as colours of deep blue, purple, and grey swirled together in the centre of the mirror's glass, mixing together to create a vague picture, and then finally focussing on the face of a small human child.

The demon's breath hitched in his throat.

The child's face seemed to radiate everything innocent and pure, everything sweet and good. The demon prince could feel it, even when separated from the creature by that reflective glass wall. Though the young being had such delicate, pretty features, Marik could tell that the mortal was male… A boy. The human's head was being cushioned by a large navy-blue pillow, long snowy-white locks of hair spread along the blue fabric of the pillow case. The tresses looked so soft and silky… The human's eyes were closed, thick black lashes standing out beautifully against milky-white skin. Lower down was a tiny slim nose and a slightly open supple mouth, a cheeky red tongue hiding behind lightly faded pink lips. The comforter of the bed (of which Marik guessed the boy was laying in), was pulled right up to the child's chin, small hands gripping the sheet gently while he dreamed nothing but pleasant dreams...

Marik planned on changing that quickly.

But for now… for now… he just wanted to reach out and touch him, just a chaste touch. Just to see how the boy's hair would feel running through his fingers… how soft his white skin would feel against his dark palm… but just as Marik lifted his arm, just as the urge reach out and touch the boy grew too much to stand, he was thrust forwards, the mirror creating its own gravitational pull until Marik made contact with the now liquefied looking glass without his consent. The prince was dragged into a portal until no limb or hair was left.

And then the mirror shut down again.

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You have no idea how long this story idea has been inside my head… I'm amazed that I finally got a chapter done for it! Em…so what do you guys think? Do you like the idea and want me to continue with it, or is it not worth carrying on with?

Oh, and if anyone is wondering about my Angels Wearing Masks story, don't worry I'm still continuing with it and I'm roughly half way through chapter 16, the chapter is just… being a little difficult -sweat drop-

Please review and tell me what you think! If I don't get any feedback then I just won't bother with it…. I don't want to waist time on a story that nobody likes.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

The room was silent, and four powder blue walls housed a child's personal sanctuary. A thick, navy coloured carpet was padded across the floor, comfy for sitting and soft on the skin, it often having been bared to the soles of feet when a certain boy refused to get dressed, or when that same boy ran to the room to escape a rather close call to the bath. Some clothes and colouring pads were seen littered on top of the carpet, spare crayons having escaped their boxes and now scattered randomly, fated to be deemed lost to the child when it was time to put them neatly away again. Pushed against the far right wall was a open white chest, filled with train tracks and small trains. Above the chest were shelves that held many books containing the boy's favourite fairytales and make believe adventures, along with a few soft toys. A matching wardrobe was on the left, doors securely shut. In the centre of the room was a bed, headboard pressed against the wall's blue paint, and nestled in the bed's covers was a young boy, long snowy hair fanned around his head and eyes closed as his chest rose and fell with gentle breaths. Next to the child was a tiny nightlight to fight away the child's fear of he dark, the small contraption casting the shadow of a brown bear that had most likely fallen from the child's clutches during the night.

It was the perfect haven for the average youngster, and which soon was to be disturbed.

The atmosphere in the room turned strange, it once having been calm and peaceful, now was becoming tense and taut. Suddenly a patch of air shimmered unnaturally, and then in one swift movement, like a gentle breeze of wind, a figure emerged from nothing, stepping into the bedroom like one would revealed them self from hiding behind an invisible, nonexistent wall. The form revealed was that of a child, a prince, a _demon_. His golden locks of hair rose to the sky in thick spikes, his fringe split and shaped like two sharp demonic horns that pointed away from each other and from his eyes. His face was sharp with a pointed nose and triangular chin. The demon's eyes were cold and of a deep purple colour, mysterious and dark to complement his skin, the colour of which was a rich bronze. Worn on his body were leather trousers and a loose black shirt, the neck line in a wide 'V' shape with the mouth of the sleeves hanging elegantly from his wrists.

Marik eyes swept over the room with little interest, taking in the typical childish mess sceptically until his gaze was finally snagged on the human sleeping peacefully in the bed. A smirk simultaneously appeared on his face, and his eyes seemed to lighten somewhat.

The demon crept over to the bed silently, coming to a stop at the human's side. He then loomed over the other eagerly. There was no denying that Marik was excited. Hell, excited was probably an understatement! With an impatient grin, the prince once again lifted his hand, reaching out to touch one of the stray, pale tresses laid beside the boy's head. He couldn't help it. He _needed _to. Just to make sure that this was all real, that what he wanted to do was finally about to happen.

Marik was rather disappointed when his hand fell through the hair and straight into the pillow.

Frowning, Marik pulled his hand out from the solid object and closer to his eyes. He realised then that he was nothing more than a see-through silicone, his transparent skin giving him the look of a ghost. He supposed his kind wasn't allowed to truly live in this world… at least not fully. This annoyed the tanned demon, and in his frustration he accidentally let a growl slip from his throat. The human's ears picked up on the foreign noise and he shifted slightly at the disturbance. Marik's eyes widened when seeing this and he instantly brought both hands to his mouth, silently cursing himself for being so careless. Thankfully for Marik the noise wasn't enough to cause the boy to stir, and the angelic child turned to lay on his side, some of his hair falling over his shoulder to fall onto his face. The boy's sleeping form was now faced directly at the young intruder.

Marik let both his hands fall from his mouth and let out a sigh of relief. He was wasting time and he knew it. No more curious watching, it was time to get to the fun! After all, what did it matter if he couldn't touch his victim lightly? Marik's nightmare would be as real as any experience or touch could be. Smirking to himself again, Marik got down onto his knees to look at the sleeping creature's face closely, and then began to concentrate. A glowing, golden eye appeared on his forehead, and the prince slowly closed his eyes.

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When Marik opened his eyes again, the first thing he noticed were lots of trees and **lots** of different coloured flowers… too many in Marik's opinion. There were reds, pinks, purples, oranges, blues, greens, whites… so many different shades of the stupid little plants, but not one of them had the colours that Marik liked. No grey, brown or black… just a bunch of cheery, disgusting weeds. Above him was a clear blue sky with a large, warm sun, that seemed to somehow _smile_ down at him. Overall, everything had a happy, joyful feeling to it.

Rather sickening really…

Scowling slightly, the prince turned his head left and right, disappointed to see that that same cheerful atmosphere was carried throughout the boy's entire dream. Just where was that human anyway? Wasn't he suppose to appear right next to the boy? Maybe Marik was meant to find him first… Or should he first create the setting for the nightmare and then find the kid? Then again, perhaps he had to force the other to come to hi--

"H… Hello…"

Immediately Marik's head snapped down towards the softly spoken sound. There, laying in the flowers on his back, was the white-haired child Marik had been so eager to find. The human was gazing up at him innocently, large chocolate eyes blinking cutely with a fluffy, grey bunny resting on his stomach, the boy's hand sitting happily on the animal's back after pausing mid-pat when realising someone was standing over him.

Suddenly, Marik didn't know what to do.

The small human waited patently for the other's reply, but after a few minutes of nothing coming out of the guest's mouth, the human instead moved into a sitting position and turned to face him properly, the tiny rabbit falling into his lap. "It's… It's nice to meet you!" The mortal tried again for a response, his shy nature giving him a little difficulty in getting the desired sentence out. His parents had always told him to be polite, and he had heard his dad say that sentence before when greeting someone. He had said it right hadn't he?

The demon prince didn't say anything, and the way he stared at the boy was beginning to make the human feel uncomfortable. "I-I…" the boy stuttered, pulling the small rabbit into his arms in a poor attempt to comfort himself, worried that he had somehow offended the other. "What's your name?" he said after finally gaining some courage to try speaking to the other again.n

Marik suddenly managed to gain his senses again. "That's none of your business!" he snapped back, a little embarrassed with himself for not managing to reply straight away, and angry at the boy for taking him by surprise and making him lose concentration.

The chocolate-eyed child flinched at the reply, holding the rabbit a bit tighter and hugging it to his chest. The suddenly harsh glare he was receiving, along with the offensive answer and angered expression on the other's face, unnerving him greatly. "S-Sorry." he sputtered out in a shaky voice. He wasn't discouraged, however. "M-My n-name's Ryou… Do y-you live h-here?"

Marik looked down at him oddly. "Do I live here?" he repeated in a slow, demeaning tone. Was this kid mocking him or something? Or was he really so stupid to not even realise when he was dreaming?

Marik stared long and hard into innocent, but clearly oblivious, chocolate-brown eyes. The intimidating action only caused more anxiety to swell in Ryou's chest, and the human quickly lowered his eyes.

The demon smirked. He really didn't know, did he? "Ryou, was it?"

Ryou nodded his head gently, not yet feeling confident enough to look up and make eye contact again. "Y-Yes?"

The smirk grew incredibly large. "Well I do live here." This caused Ryou's head to snap up, his eyes slightly wide and expression quite startled. "And you're trespassing on my property…"

It was safe to say that Ryou didn't actually know what the word 'trespassing' meant, but from the way this stranger was now staring at him, grin twisted manically and eyes wide with amusement and spite, he could guess that it was nothing good. Another apology came as a quick, almost automatic, option to Ryou's mind, along with the question of whether or not he should ask the other to explain what… well to explain what he just said, really.

However, it was at that moment that Ryou began to notice something odd happening. Something _wrong_. The air that had once been delightfully warm, refreshing and sweet with the scent of flowers, had suddenly turned cold, foggy and polluted, almost like he was inhaling fumes. He looked upwards seeing that that wonderful sun that had hung high in a clear blue sky had now sunk, leaving darkness in its wake and a far away moon which, Ryou didn't fail to notice, was strangely tinted red.

A sickening feeling was resting in the pit of Ryou's stomach and he anxiously dug his nails into the ground, expecting to feel two big clumps of long, uncut grass between his fingers. Instead he felt something dry and fragile crumbling in his grip.

When Ryou looked down he saw why.

_Everything_ was dead. The grass had turned thin and brown, the flowers shrivelled and withered._ Nothing _was alive anymore. Everything that had made this place beautiful was now just… _gone_.

Another thing he realised was gone was the rabbit.

When had he let the furry little animal go? When had he noticed that there was nothing but thin air resting in his lap?

Confused and somewhat frightened, Ryou lifted his head again to hopefully get some answers from the other. Maybe he knew what was going on? But when he did lift his head it was not the boy he saw standing there.

It was a forty-foot sized dragon.

The beast loomed over him with sharp, bloodthirsty eyes, red irises glowing unnaturally. Claws, grown to an unruly length, stood long and pointed, giving Ryou the image of rogue blades. Spikes, looking just as lethal as the claws, ran down its spine and to the end of its thick tail. Then finally the scales, black and colourless as the environment it stood in. The mythological being held itself with an air of hostility, of danger, something that was expected to strike without warning, like a cobra or rabid dog.

To Ryou, it was terrifying. To stand in the path of such a cruel, ferocious-looking beast, scared for his life, scared of being _eaten… _It was one of the worst things a seven year old could imagine, could ever dream of…

…could ever have a nightmare about….

This time it was Ryou who didn't know what to do. "M-Mister?" He turned his head left and right, the movement sharp and edgy. Where had his new friend gone? Nervous eyes flickered back to the monstrosity in front of him. Had… Had the dragon _eaten_ him?!

The dragon somehow managed to grin, its sharp teeth gleaming hungrily. Lowering its head, the monster brought itself down to eyelevel, right in front of Ryou's face. _"Run." _

Such a demonic, snake-like sounding command caused Ryou to tremble uncontrollably, and yet he did contrary to what he was told and stayed where he was. Ryou wanted to run, he really, _really _did, but he couldn't.

Because, though the voice was deeper and resembled that of a monster's, it still matched that of his new friend's almost perfectly.

The human wrapped his arms around himself in a pitiful attempt to control his shaking. "N-No," he stuttered finally.

Red eyes narrowed dangerously, range somehow turning their colouring darker. No? How could the human say no? He hadn't given him a choice! "No?" Marik growled out in a threatening tone. This human would _not _deny him what he needed. He would _not _deny him this experience, and he would _not _treat him the same way his own people did! He had every right to do this and no stupid _human _would tell him otherwise! _"I said __**run!**__"_

Ryou's shaking worsened and his right leg reached back, as though he were about to turn and flee, but, with a sudden spark of determination, Ryou made the courageous effort to stand straight again. "I-I can't. Daddy said… Mummy and Daddy want me to- to make friends." The boy paused and took a deep breath, hoping the action would keep his stuttering under control. "Dad said instead of crying, I should make the kids that pick on me my friends. So…" Though he was still shaking, Ryou managed to look the demon prince in the eye. "…Will you be my friend…?"

The demon froze, contempt fading into bewildered calmness. The image almost matched that of a fairytale: A beautiful commoner managing to sooth the heart of a hideous, but royal beast.

Still, the whole 'happily ever after' ending never did appear easily in any fairytale.

Friend? Just who did this human think he was? He, Prince Marik, the future king of all shadow demons, fated to be the most powerful, feared demon of all worlds, a willing companion to a pathetic human?

Rough scales smoothed out into bronze skin, claws shrank into nails and eyes lightened to a hazy purple.

It was laughable! Were all humans this stupid? What a ridiculous question!

The creature's huge size slowly morphed into something smaller, teeth became more blunt and the tail vanished to leave nothing but normal limbs.

Marik had no use for friends. Friends brought weakness. It meant trusting someone and comforting them when they were upset, he'd seen that kind of thing between Malik and Rishid plenty of times. He couldn't do that, what if it made him soft? No one would respect a soft King, therefore Marik couldn't be soft, he couldn't have friends. Even if he could, he wouldn't be able to keep them. Marik had never been the caring, patient type. If he had a friend they'd eventually leave him for someone better.

Marik didn't like people. He didn't want a friend, especially not some clueless, pathetic, human friend.

But…

"M-Mister?"

Marik, now in his normal, more human-like, form, scowled at the boy and crossed his arms. "That's stupid. Father's are stupid." The demon's scowl deepened. "And don't call me 'Mister'! I'm a Prince! You will refer to me as Prince Marik!"

"You're…" Marik watched curiously as Ryou's face changed rapidly from unease to astonishment. "You're a Prince?! Wow!"

Wow? Marik hadn't been expecting that reaction. Everyone knew he was a Prince at home, but no one had ever reacted to his title in the way Ryou had. He'd seen people flinch in fear when hearing his name, some had even had the gall to mock him, even express disgust when seeing him face-to-face. His father treated him with cruelty _because _he was a Prince.

So why did this human look so… happy? Excited? The boy really was weird.

All of a sudden Marik's hand was grabbed. "Prince Marik, lets play a game!"

"Hey!--" Marik almost tripped over himself as he was dragged towards an area heavily filled with… trees and flowers? Hadn't Marik got rid of all that cheery, colourful crap?

Marik looked around himself, forgetting momentarily that Ryou was still pulling him by the hand.

What the hell?! Since when had all this disgusting crap come back?! All the flowers had sprouted again! They weren't even the same flowers! They were bigger, brighter, more vivid and they'd come in greater numbers! They were everywhere, dammit! That stupid sun was even back in the sky!

"We can play hide and seek, if you want? I'll let you go first, if you like!" Ryou rambled excitedly, unaware of Marik's annoyance and acting nothing like the stuttering, fearful human Marik had met only moments ago.

Hide and seek? Hadn't that been Marik's plan from the very beginning? He was suppose to lure his victim into the words, stalk him until the other's fear was about to reach it's limit, and then bury him alive… So, really, everything was going the way he wanted. Ryou was dragging him to a bunch of trees, Marik could always make the small wood bigger later. Yes, everything was--

"Ok then! Do you want to count first, or hide?"

The demon was startled when realising Ryou had already brought them to their chosen 'play area'. Ryou mistakenly took the Prince's jolt as embarrassment, and concern for the other expressed itself on his face. "Do you… not know how to play hide and seek? It's ok, I can explain it to you. You just--"

"I know how to play a stupid game of hide and seek!" How dare the human think of him as an idiot! Ryou was the stupid one! He had no idea what kind of hell Marik was going to put him through!

"O-Oh, well…" Some of Ryou's anxiety returned at the retort, and Marik could see the cogs in Ryou's head turning as he tried to figure out what was the right thing to say next. Humans really were funny creatures. They obviously didn't cope well under pressure. Then again, maybe that was a quality unique to Ryou alone? Did other humans turn an odd pink colour and stutter as much as Ryou did? Did Ryou do it often? The thought was rather… annoying. The boy probably shouldn't look so pretty in front of others. In fact, if Ryou _were _his friend, Marik would have already order him to stop-- "Do you not mind, then? Would you like me to count first instead?"

Marik stifled the thought and crossed his arms again, taking on a more grumpy, uncaring disposure. "Whatever."

The human nodded in a kind of self-conscious, awkward way. "O-Ok then. I'll count to ten and then I'll come looking for you." Ryou turned his back to the prince and covered his already closed eyes with his hands.

That had to be… one of the stupidest things Marik had ever seen. What kind of fool would turn his back to him? _Him_: the most powerful, most cruel demon in the entire shadow realm, his evil nature coming second only to his father?

"1...2...3..."

Marik could do anything to this boy right now and Ryou would have no warning. Marik could attack him and Ryou wouldn't even be able to defend himself. Who would turn their back on such a dangerous being like Marik?

"4...5...6..."

He hadn't given the human any reason to trust him, had he? He didn't think so. So why would Ryou do that? Surely no one was that dumb. But then, why…?

"7...8...9..."

"Why are you acting like this?"

The small, human child jumped when hearing the demon's voice, and he spun round startled. "P-Prince Marik! But I thought you were going to h--"

"Why? Do you not understand who I am? I told you. I'm the Prince. " The demon's arms uncrossed to hang by his sides, his expression softer, lost: A face that better resembled his young age. "There's no one like you where I'm from. The others don't treat me like--" The darker-skinned child stopped himself mid-sentence, his expression rapidly turning more frustrated. It was as though Marik were disgusted at himself for almost mentioning a despicable taboo. "It just doesn't make sense! Why are you like this?!" he yelled, acting as though the human was guilty of some sort of crime.

"W-Why am I… like this?" Ryou repeated the question worriedly, with just as much confusion as Marik had. "But, I'm just trying to be nice. I-I'm sorry. I didn't think--"

"Why?" Marik said again.

"Why?" Ryou whispered the question, pausing as though expecting Marik to continue. When nothing happened, Ryou tried to figure out what was happening by himself and looked off to the side, answering the question as honestly and seriously as he could. "Well, I guess… because you're nice, Prince Marik."

Marik automatically said the first thing popped into his head. "I'm not nice."

For some reason Ryou seemed shocked by Marik's response. "B-But you're playing with me!" he stated desperately. "No one ever wants to play with me…" There was a small pause where it looked like Ryou was trying not to cry. The human rubbed at his eyes and took a deep breath, looking determinedly at Marik. "You didn't eat me, and besides…" Ryou smiled gently. "…in the stories mum reads me, the prince's are always the good guys. They always save the princess and help others." Ryou's smile widened. "You're just like them, Prince Marik. I know you are."

"Ryou…" It was strange, this feeling in Marik's stomach. It made him feel warm and light. What had Ryou done? Ryou was a human. Humans couldn't use magic, could they? But then, what had Ryou done to make him feel so…so happy…?

"I'll start again, ok?" With a smile, Ryou turned round again. "1...2...3..."

This was ridiculous. Utterly stupid. Why the fuck should he listen to some human? Ryou was obviously trying to manipulate him somehow.

"4...5...6..."

Ryou was clearly dangerous. No normal human could possibly effect him in such an odd way. Marik should stay away from him. The boy was trying to make him weak, and Marik couldn't let a human make him weak. Humans were pathetic creatures that were only good for scaring. They were the ones who were cowardly and weak. Humans were below shadow demons in every single way.

But, Ryou… Could he could make an exception, just for Ryou? After all…

"7...8...9..."

Marik did a mad dash to duck behind the closest tree.

"10! Here I come, ready or not!"

…Ryou was clearly… _special_.

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I'll be surprised if anyone remembers this story, but, awww… Cute chapter, don't you think? As you can probably already see, the chapters are a lot shorter than in Angels Wearing Masks. They may get longer as the story goes on (especially as I intend to add RishidxMalik as a side pairing), but for now they'll stay roughly this size.

Hope you enjoyed the chapter (and the fact that I didn't leave it at an evil cliffhanger for a change!).

Review?


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